Tom Williams/Roll Call/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Just days after Hurricane Isaac barreled through the Gulf Coast region bringing tornadoes and flooding, Louisiana Rep. Steve Scalise delivers this week's Republican address expressing thanks to Americans for their prayers and support for the storm-wrecked region.

"Let me take a moment to thank all Americans for the prayers and support you've sent our state and our region in recent days. Please keep those good thoughts and prayers coming, and as you do, I ask you to also remember those who lost their lives in Hurricane Katrina seven years ago. They're always in our hearts," Scalise says in the address. The congressman, a Louisiana native, "represents some of the areas hardest hit by Isaac, including St. Tammany and Tangipahoa Parishes," according to a release from House Speaker John Boehner.

Rep. Scalise says that with hundreds of thousands still without power and floods that continue to threaten the region, "We're not out of the woods just yet."

"[B]ut," he adds, "there is light at the end of the tunnel."

In the wake of Isaac, and as Americans begin to celebrate the long Labor Day weekend, Scalise highlights the efforts of local residents affected by the storm for their resilience and willingness to help others.

“During this disaster, we’ve seen neighbors helping each other and people coming together to ensure the safety of their loved ones. That’s what we in Louisiana do. That’s what Americans do. In tough times, we strive harder, we remember what’s most important to us, and we fight to protect it," Scalise says. "One of the greatest things about our country is that we’re a resilient, hard-working people, and on this Labor Day weekend, we remember these values and the things that have made our country the greatest in the world."

Scalise later adds that one way to keep the American dream alive is building a strong economy, which he says he hopes Senate Democrats will act "in short order" along with the GOP-run House to pass bills "designed to empower small businesses and remove government barriers to economic growth."

“Because for millions of Americans, this Labor Day finds them still looking for work and still asking ‘where are the jobs?’ It doesn’t have to be this way, and we can turn it around, because in America it’s times of adversity that bring out the best in us," he says. "It’s a lesson we saw on display yet again this week in Southeast Louisiana. And it’s one worth reflecting on in the coming days as we give thanks for the men and women who built this country, and rededicate ourselves to addressing the challenges America's workers face."